Animal crate with swing or drop door

ABSTRACT

An animal enclosure including a plurality of members defining an interior of the enclosure. The plurality of members includes a first member having a frame and a door formed by a plurality of interconnected horizontal and vertical wires. The door is pivotable with respect to the frame and a latch maintains the door in a closed position when latched. At least one of the wires of the door assembly is configured to include one of an access portion and a tab, and at least one of the wires of the frame assembly includes the other of the access portion and the tab. The latch, when moved to an open position, enables sliding movement of the door with respect to the frame. Alignment of the access portion and tab provides for opening of the door and pivoting movement of the door with respect to the frame.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to an animal enclosure, and, inparticular, to an animal crate having a swinging door or a drop door.

BACKGROUND

The use of animal cages or crate is well known. Many conventional cageshave been developed over the years for housing animals of differentshapes and sizes. For instance, animal cages typically house dogs andcats. Rabbits, rodents and other small animals have also been known tobe housed by such cages and are quite common. In fact, such cages arealso used for farm animals when needed, including ducks and chickens. Ascages have been further developed, the portability and ease of use havebecome points of emphasis. Some conventional cages, for example, havebeen designed to collapse to a compact structure for portability. Othershave been designed to be of light weight and from durable materials.Conventional cages have been designed for ease of transporting ananimal. Some conventional cages are designed as exercise pens thatprovide an interior space that the animal can move about, particularlyoutdoors.

Most conventional cages include at least one door for providing accessto the interior of the cage. The animal enters or exits the cage throughan opening when the door is opened, and the animal can be safelycontained in the cage when the door is closed. Many conventional cagesinclude a door that is attached to the cage with a hinge. In someconventional cages, the doors swing from a side of the cage and inothers the door swings from the bottom or top of the cage. This allowsthe door to be swung from a closed position to an open and vice versa.In cages with side or top swinging doors, the animal can walk into thecage. In cages with bottom swinging doors, the animal is typicallyplaced into and removed from the cage by the owner, A variety of latcheshave been incorporated into the design of the door to allow a user toopen, close, and or securely latch the door.

Many of these conventional designs have limitations, however. Withregards to an exercise pen, for example, the door is generally formed byan entire height and width of a panel or side member of the pen. Many ofthese doors are not able to be securely latched or may not prevent ananimal from escaping the enclosure. In addition, due to the size of thedoor, it can be difficult for an owner to reach into the interior of theexercise pen and retrieve a desired animal when two or more animals areenclosed therein.

Therefore, a need exists for an improved animal enclosure that providesbetter means for accessing the interior of the enclosure which overcomessome of the above-mentioned limitations in the prior art.

SUMMARY

In one exemplary embodiment of the present disclosure, there is providedan animal enclosure including a plurality of members defining aninterior of the enclosure, where the plurality of members includes atleast a first member. A frame of the first member includes a pluralityof interconnected wires that define an opening for an animal to passtherethrough and to enter or exit the interior of the enclosure. A doorof the first member includes a plurality of interconnected wires and iscoupled to the frame. The door is pivotable about a pivot wire of theframe to move between an open position and a closed position. A latchassembly includes a handle structure, where the handle structure isconfigured to pivot with respect to one of the door and the frame and tolatch the door in a closed position with respect to the frame. A doorstop includes an access portion and a tab, wherein one of the frame andthe door includes the access portion and the other of the frame and thedoor includes the tab, wherein an alignment of the access portion andthe tab enables pivotable movement of the door with respect to the framefrom the closed position to the open position.

In another embodiment, there is provided a door assembly for an animalenclosure including a frame having a plurality of interconnectedhorizontal and vertical wires that defines an opening for an animal topass therethrough and to enter or exit the interior of the enclosure. Adoor includes a plurality of interconnected horizontal and verticalwires and is coupled to the frame. The door is pivotable about a pivotwire of the frame to move between an open position and a closedposition. A latch assembly includes a handle structure, where the handlestructure is configured to pivot with respect to one of the door and theframe and to latch the door in a closed position with respect to theframe. A door stop includes an access portion and a tab, wherein one ofthe frame and the door includes the access portion and the other of theframe and the door includes the tab.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The above-mentioned aspects of the present invention and the manner ofobtaining them will become more apparent and the invention itself willbe better understood by reference to the following description of theembodiments of the invention, taken in conjunction with the accompanyingdrawings, wherein:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of an animal enclosure;

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of a door frame and door assembly of theanimal enclosure of FIG. 1 with a latch in a latched position;

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the door frame and door assembly of FIG.2 with a latch in an unlatched position;

FIG. 3A is a perspective view of a door stop or catch of FIG. 3.

FIG. 4 is a perspective view of the door frame and door assembly of FIG.2 with the door in an open position.

FIG. 5 is a perspective view of another embodiment of a door frame anddoor assembly;

FIG. 6 is a perspective view of the door frame and door assembly of FIG.5 with a latch in an unlatched position.

FIG. 6A is a perspective view of a door stop or catch of FIG. 6;

FIG. 7 is a perspective view of the door assembly of FIG. 6 in an openposition;

FIG. 8 is a perspective view of another embodiment of a door frame anddoor assembly;

FIG. 9 is a perspective view of a latch of the door assembly of FIG. 8in an unlatched position;

FIG. 10 is a perspective view of the door assembly of FIG. 8 in an openposition;

FIG. 11 is a perspective view of another embodiment of a door assembly;

FIG. 12 is a perspective view of a latch of the door assembly of FIG. 11in an unlatched position;

FIG. 12A is a perspective view of a door stop or catch of FIG. 12;

FIG. 13 is a perspective view of the door assembly of FIG. 11 in an openposition;

FIG. 14 is a perspective view of another embodiment of a door stop orcatch;

FIG. 15 is a perspective view of another embodiment of a door frame anddoor assembly;

FIG. 16 is a perspective view of another embodiment of a door frame anddoor assembly;

Corresponding reference numerals are used to indicate correspondingparts throughout the several views.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The embodiments of the present invention described herein are notintended to be exhaustive or to limit the invention to the precise formsdisclosed in the following detailed description. Rather, the embodimentsare chosen and described so that others skilled in the art appreciateand understand the principles and practices of the present invention.

The present invention relates to an animal enclosure. The animalenclosure can be used for multiple purposes, such as to contain one ormore animals or objects. The enclosure can be made of any size foraccommodating an animal or object of any size. In addition, theenclosure can be made of different materials including aluminum,plastic, and steel. The enclosure can be designed as an animal cage todefine an interior that is surrounded at all sides, or it can bedesigned as an exercise pen in which at least one side is not present,for instance a top side.

Referring to FIG. 1, an exemplary embodiment of an animal enclosure 100is shown. The enclosure 100 is in the form of an exercise pen, but thisis only intended to be exemplary. The enclosure 100 can be formed ofsubstantially horizontal and vertical wires that overlap one another todefine an interior portion 118. One or more of the horizontal wires canbe coupled to one or more of the vertical wires, and vice versa, to addstructural integrity to the enclosure 100. In other embodiments, wiresare oriented in other directions than horizontal and vertical. The wiresmay be welded, adhered, fastened, or coupled to one another through avariety of means. The enclosure 100 can include a plurality of sides ormembers that form the enclosure 100.

In FIG. 1, for example, the enclosure 100 includes a top member 102, abottom member 104, a front member 106, and a rear member 108. The frontmember 106 includes a door assembly 110 which opens and closes toprovide access to the interior of the enclosure 100. The enclosure 100also includes a first side 112 and a second 114. A latch 116 isoperatively connected to the door assembly 110 and is configured tomaintain the door assembly 110 in the closed position when latched. Eachindividual member, in different embodiments, is coupled to an adjacentmember via one or more of a fastener, clip, latch, or other means. Forinstance, in FIG. 1, each member is coupled to an adjacent member by useof one or more clips 119. Vertical or horizontal wires of the respectivemember can be rotatably disposed within the clip to allow the enclosure,of any number of sides, to be configured in a desired manner. While theillustrated embodiment depicts eight sides, other embodiments mayinclude any number of sides. In this manner, a user may assemble theenclosure to any desired shape based on the size of the animal, objectetc. being contained therein.

With respect to the enclosure 100, the front member 106 is shown havingthe door 110. The door 110 is coupled to a frame 122 defined by thefront member 106, such that the door 110 can be configured to movebetween the open position and the closed position. For instance, thedoor assembly 110 can be pivotally coupled to the frame 122 so that thedoor 110 can pivot from one position to the other position and inbetween. Moreover, other members can include a door. Although only onedoor 110 is shown in FIG. 1, in other embodiments two or more doorassemblies for accessing the interior of the enclosure 100 are included.

Referring to FIG. 2, the first member 106 and its door 110 are shown ingreater detail as door assembly 200. The door assembly 200 includes aframe 202 which supports a pivotable door 204. The frame 202 defines anopening which is spanned by the door 204, where the opening provides forentry to and exit from the interior of the enclosure 100. In thisembodiment, the door 204 is movable between the closed position (e.g.,FIG. 2) and the open position (e.g., FIG. 4). Moreover, the door 204 ismoveable between the open position and closed position relative theframe 202.

The door assembly 200 includes a handle or latch assembly 206operatively connected to the door 204 for releasably engaging with theframe 202. The latch assembly 206 includes a first curved end 208 and asecond curved end 210 configured to engage a horizontal wire 216 of theframe 202. In other embodiments, latch assembly 206 includes a singlecurved end. A handle portion 211 of the latch assembly 206 provides agripping surface for opening and closing the latch. The horizontal wire216 is fixedly coupled to a vertical wire 218, one of the vertical wiresprovided by the frame 202. The door assembly 200 includes a plurality ofhorizontal wires 215, some of which terminate in a hook 213 having acurved end 214, which is configured to wrap around the vertical wire 218to enable pivoting movement of the door 204 about the wire 218 and toenable sliding movement of the door 204 along the wire 218. Movement ofthe latch 206 about a top horizontal wire 220 of the door 204 engages ordisengages the latch 206 from the horizontal wire 216. When engaged, thelatch 206 restricts the door 204 from opening. When disengaged, thelatch 206 is positioned to allow the door 204 to be pivoted to the openposition. A plurality of hooks 212 extend from the vertical wires of theframe 202 which position the frame 202 with respect to the bottom member104 of the enclosure 100. See FIG. 1.

The door 204 further includes a vertical wire 222 and a bottomhorizontal wire 223. In the illustrated embodiment, the wire 220, wire222, and wire 223 are a single piece of wire which is bent to shape anddefines part of the outer perimeter of the door 204. In otherembodiments, the wires 220, 222, and 223 are formed of two or morepieces of wire.

The frame 202 and door 204 are formed to provide a door stop 224 whichis configured to substantially prevent the door 204 from being pivotedabout the horizontal wire 218, even in the event that the latch 206 isdisengaged from the horizontal wire 216. The door stop 224 includes anaccess portion 225, which in the embodiment of FIG. 2 is a slot definedby the vertical wire 222, and a blocking portion 226, defined by alength of the vertical wire 222. The door stop 224 further includes atab 227 coupled to the frame 202 at a vertical wire 233 and a verticalwire 235. A second door stop 228 includes an access portion 229 and ablocking portion 230 defined by the vertical wire 222. A tab 231,coupled to the frame 202, is provided as part of the door stop 228 inthe embodiment of FIG. 2. Both of the access portions 225 and 229 aregenerally configured as a “U” shape when viewed along the plane of thedoor 204.

As shown in FIG. 3, the latch assembly 206 can be disengaged orunlatched from the horizontal wire 216 by moving the handle portion 211along direction 302. In doing so, the latch assembly 206 is pivotallyuncoupled from the horizontal wire 216 disposed on the frame 202. As thehandle portion 211 is moved away from the door 204, the first and secondcurved ends 208 and 210 pivot about an X-axis 304 defined by thehorizontal wire 220. Once the latch 206 is disengaged from the frame202, the door 204 is free to move along the plane defined frame 202 inthe direction 306. Since each of the wrapped ends 214 are locatedbetween adjacent horizontal wires of the frame 202, the door 204 isconfigured to slidingly move along the direction 306, as well as in theopposite direction, but is restricted in movement when one, or more, ofthe wrapped ends 214 comes into contact with one of the horizontal wiresof the frame 202.

By moving the door 204 in the direction 306 a predetermined distance,the access portion of each of the door stops 224 and 228 is aligned withthe tabs 227 and 231, which permits movement of the door 204 withrespect to the frame 202 about the vertical wire 218. As can be seen inFIG. 3, the access portion 225 is horizontally aligned with the tab 227and the access portion 229 is horizontally aligned with the tab 231. Ascan be seen in FIG. 2, the door 204 is in a first position with respectto the frame 202, such that the blocking portions 226 and 230 arehorizontally aligned with the respective tabs 229 and 231. In thisposition, attempted movement of the door 204 about the vertical wire 218is blocked or prevented from opening since any pivotal movement of thedoor is restricted when the blocking portions come into contact with thetabs.

As can be seen in FIG. 2, the weight of the door 204 provides aself-locating function which places the door 204 in a position whichsubstantially prevents opening of the door 204, should the latch 206 belocated in an unlatched position. In this way, the arrangement of theaccess portions, the blocking portions and the tabs provide a degree ofsafety for the owner and the animal occupant of the enclosure. To openthe cage, not only must the latch be unlatched, but the door 204 must bemoved in the direction 306 to position the access portion relative tothe tabs as illustrated in FIG. 3.

FIG. 3A illustrates the door stop 224 which includes the access portion225, the blocking portion 226, and the tab 227. In one embodiment, thetab 227 is formed of a single piece of wire which is connected to thevertical wire 233 and the vertical wire 235. The tab 227 includes afirst leg 300 and a second leg 302 which terminate at the tab 227 whichincludes multiple bends configured to place the tab 227 at a plane whichis displaced from the plane of the frame 202. By spacing the tab 227from the plane of the frame 202, the door 204 can be moved verticallywith respect to the frame 202. The tab 227 defines a distance or aheight “h” which is less than a distance of a height “H” defined by theaccess portion 225. In this configuration, therefore, the access portion225 moves past the tab 227 when the door 204 is opened. With the door inthis position, the blocking portion 226 is vertically displaced from thetab 227 and does not therefore prevent the door 204 from being opened.The door stop 228 is similarly configured as this configuration of FIG.3A.

FIG. 4 illustrates the door 204 in the open position which is enabled bymovement of the door 204 in the direction 306 as described with respectto FIG. 3. By moving the door 204 in the direction 306, the tabs 227 and231 do not prevent the door 204 from pivoting about the vertical wire218 which defines a vertical pivot Z axis 400. Movement of the door 204in a direction 402 is facilitated by movement of the latch 206 in thedirection 302 which disengages a first receptacle 404 and a secondreceptacle 406 from the horizontal wire 216. Opening of the door 204provides an entrance/exit opening 408 for the animal.

FIG. 5 illustrates another embodiment of a door assembly 500 whichincludes a frame 502 and a door 504. A latch 506 is operativelyconnected to the door 504 which engages a horizontal wire 508 of theframe 502 to latch the door 504 in a closed position. The latch 506pivots about a horizontal wire 510 to which it is operatively connected.

To open the door 504 in this embodiment, the latch 506 is movedoutwardly from the plane of the door 504 and upwardly to disengage thelatch 506 from the horizontal wire 508. At some point, continued upwardmovement of the latch 506 places the latch 506 in a position where thelatch can be pulled upwardly generally in a direction 509. Continuedmovement of the latch 506 in the direction 509 moves the door 504 in thesame direction to enable pivotal movement of the door about a horizontalwire 512 of the frame 502 which defines an X pivot axis 514. The door504 includes a first hook 516 and a second hook 518, each of whichdefines a slot through which the horizontal wire 512 extends. Internalends of each of the slots determine the extent of the upward movement ofthe door 504 and provide a pivot point about which the door 504 pivots.In this embodiment, therefore, the hooks 516 and 518 define a largerspace than the hooks 213 of FIG. 2, which enables the door 504 to movealong the frame 502 to align features of a plurality of door stops.

The door assembly 500 includes a plurality of door stops: a first doorstop 520, a second door stop 522, a third door stop 524 and fourth doorstop 526. Each of the door stops includes an access portion, a blockingportion, and a tab as previously described. In the embodiment of FIG. 5,the door 504 includes access portions 521, 523, 525, and 527. The accessportions 521 and 525 include a “U” shape as previously described for theaccess portions 225 and 229 of FIG. 2. In this embodiment, the accessportions 523 and 527 are generally formed as an “L” shaped portion inwhich the vertically and horizontally extending legs of the “L” definean open portion, where the vertically extending leg is coupled to ahorizontal wire 529. The horizontal wire 529 defines the bottom extentof the door 504. In other embodiments, the access portions 523 and 527are “U” shaped.

Tabs 528, 530, 532, 534 are located on the frame 502. Each of the tabsis configured to block opening of the door, i.e, pivoting of the doorabout the X axis 514, if the door 504 is located in the location asillustrated in FIG. 5. The weight of the door tends to locate the doorin the position illustrated such that the tabs 528, 530, 532, and 534are disposed adjacently to blocking portions 536, 538, 540 and 542. Evenif the latch 506 is moved to the unlatched position, the location of theblocking portions with respect to the tabs prevents the door 504 frombeing opened sufficiently to provide access to the interior of anenclosure.

FIG. 6 illustrates the door assembly 500 of FIG. 5, where the door 504has been moved in the direction 509 to align each of the access portionswith a corresponding tab. Sliding movement of the door 504 with respectto the frame 502 enables alignment of the access portions with the tabs.Once the tabs are aligned with access portions, the door can be pivotedabout the wire 512 to open the door 504. As can be seen, the door 504 issufficiently raised to place the ends of the slots defined by the hooks516 and 518 such that the door pivots at the slots. The ends of theslots, however, do not need to be in contact with the horizontal wire512 to enable pivoting movement of the door 504.

FIG. 6A illustrates a section of FIG. 6 which shows the door stop 526including the tab 530, the access portion 527, and the blocking portion538. The tab 530 is formed in a fashion similar to the previouslydescribed tabs and includes an extending portion 541, which is displacedfrom the plane of the frame 502 such that when the door 504 is in thelowered position, the blocking portion 538 prevents the door fromopening due to interference with the tab 540. Movement of the door 504upwardly positions the access portion 527 adjacent to the extendingportion 540, but is sufficiently displaced from the extending portion toenable opening of the door 504.

FIG. 7 illustrates the door assembly 500 of FIG. 5 with the door 504 inan open position to allow movement of the animal through an opening 550defined by the frame 502. In particular, each of the hooks 516 and 518respectively includes a slot 552 and 554 defining a distance “d”. Thedistance “d” is selected to provide sufficient upward movement of thedoor 504 with respect to the frame 502 to enable alignment of the accessportions with the tabs. It is desirable to define the distance “d” suchthat upward movement of the door 504 with respect to the frame 502 islimited. In one embodiment, the distance “d” is selected such thatcontact with an end of one or both of the slots 552 and 554 providessufficient clearance to open the door 504, without the need to manuallyalign the access portion with the tabs. When the slots are appropriatelysized, contact of the ends of the slot with the horizontal wire 512 whenthe door is moved in the direction 509 provides for accurate alignmentof the access portions with the tabs without the need to make furtheradjustments.

FIG. 8 illustrates another embodiment of a door assembly 600 including aframe 602 and a door 604. In this embodiment, the door 604 includes aplurality of hooked ends 605 which surround a vertical wire 606 of theframe 602. The door 604 pivots about the vertical wire 606. The doorassembly 600 includes a first door stop 608 and a second door stop 610.Each of the door stops 608 and 610 includes an access portion, ablocking portion, and a tab as previously described. Door stop 608includes a tab 607, an access portion 609, and a blocking portion 617.Door stop 610 includes a tab 611, an access portion 613, and a blockingportion 619. In this embodiment, however, a latch assembly 612 iscoupled to the door 604 at a side area of the door opposite the pivotingportion defined by the hooked ends 605.

The latch assembly 612 includes a support 614 which is fixed to avertical wire 616 and a vertical wire 618 which also provide structureto the door 604. The support 614 is made of wire and includes a bentportion 620 and a bent portion 622 each defining a space between thesupport 614 and a plane defined the horizontal and vertical wiresforming the door 604. The spaces are configured to accept a moveablelatch 624 having a handle 626 fixedly coupled to a pin 628. Each of thespaces is sufficiently sized to enable sliding and rotational movementof the handle 626 with respect to the support 614. An end 630 of the pin628 is configured to extend past the support to engage a tab 632 fixedlycoupled to the frame 602. The tab 632 defines a tab aperture 633 (seeFIG. 9) which is configured to accept the end 630 of the pin 628 in alatched position. Sliding movement of the pin 628 moves the end 630 intoand out of the tab 632.

As further illustrated in FIG. 9, the latch 624 is located in a positionin which the end 630 is moved out of the tab aperture 633. The door 604has also been moved in a direction 634 to align tab 607 with the accessportion 609 and tab 611 with access portion 613. Once the openingalignment of the door with respect to the frame has been achieved, thedoor 604 is moveable from the illustrated closed position to an openposition shown in FIG. 10. The open position of the door 604 providesaccess to the interior the enclosure through an opening 636

FIG. 11 illustrates another embodiment of a door assembly 700 includinga frame 702 and a door 704. In this embodiment, the door 704 includes aplurality of hooked ends 705 which surround a vertical wire 706 of theframe 702. The door 704 pivots about the vertical wire 706. The doorassembly 700 includes a first door stop 708 and a second door stop 710.Each of the door stops 708 and 710 includes an access portion, ablocking portion, and a tab as previously described. In this embodiment,however, each of the tabs are fixedly coupled to the door 704 and eachof the access portions and blocking portions are configured as part ofthe frame 702. Door stop 708 includes a tab 712, an access portion 714,and a blocking portion 716. Door stop 710 includes a tab 718, an accessportion 720, and a blocking portion 722. As before, the blockingportions 716 and 718 prevent opening of the door 704 when the door is inthe lower position as illustrated in FIG. 11.

The door 704 includes a latch assembly 724 which is substantiallysimilar in form and function as the latch assembly 624 of FIGS. 8, 9,and 10. The latch assembly 724 includes a latch support 726 which isfixed to a vertical wire 727 and a vertical wire 728 which also providestructure to the door 704. The latch support 726 supports a moveablelatch 729 having a handle 730 fixedly coupled to a pin 732. The pinslidingly engages a tab 734 as previously described.

FIG. 12 illustrates the door 704 of FIG. 11 which has been moved in adirection 740 such the door 704 is moved upwardly with respect to theframe 702. In this position, each of the tabs 712 and 718 arehorizontally positioned with respective access portions 714 and 720 toprovide for opening of the door 704 when the latch 724 is unlatched.Upon disengagement of the pin 732 from the tab 734 and positioning ofthe door as illustrated, the door 704 can be opened to provide access tothe interior of the enclosure through an opening 742 such as isillustrated in FIG. 13.

As can be seen in FIG. 12A, which illustrates the stop 708, and in FIG.13, the access portions 714 and 720 are formed as part of a verticalwire 744 which is one of the wires used to provide the frame 702. Inthis embodiment, the wire 744 is bent to define the access portion 714and 720, each of which resembles a “U” shape. When latch 724 is moved toenable upward movement of the door and the tabs 712 and 718 are alignedwith the access portions 714 and 720, the door 704 is moveable from theclosed position to the open position. In this embodiment, the accessportions 714 and 720 remain stationary during movement of the door 704and the tabs 712 and 718 move with movement of the door 704, unlikepreviously described embodiments.

As also seen in FIG. 12A, the door includes a stop 746 which preventsthe door 704 from swinging into the interior of the enclosure. In theillustrated the embodiment, the stop 746 is a portion of a horizontalwire 748. The stop 746 is spaced from a vertical wire 750 of the door704 and defines a space between a front plane of the door 704 and thestop 746. The tab 712 defines a space between a back plane of the door704. Consequently, in the closed position of FIG. 11, the tabs 712 and718 are located in the interior of the enclosure and the stop 746 and aplurality of additional stops 752 are located outside of the enclosure.The tab 712, unlike previously described tabs, is fixed to the door 704,and moves as the door 704 moves. The access portions are fixed to theframe.

FIG. 14 illustrates another embodiment of a door stop 760. In thisconfiguration, an extension tab 762 is fixedly coupled to a door 764,only a portion of which is shown. The door 765 includes vertically andhorizontally located wire, wherein the extension tab 762 is coupled to avertical wire 766 and a vertical wire 768. A door frame 770, a portionof which is shown, includes a vertical wire 772 formed to include ablocking portion 773. In this embodiment, the blocking portion 773prevents opening of the door 764 when the extension tab 762 ishorizontally positioned between a first portion 774 and a second portion776 of the blocking portion 773 which terminate at a blocking tab 778.The blocking tab 778 prevents or minimizes pivoting movement of door764, when extension tab 762 is horizontally aligned with the blockingtab 778.

The blocking tab 778 is formed by a first bend 780 and a second bend 782of the wire 772. At least one of the bends 780 and 782 includes aninside surface formed to be outside a terminating end 784 of theextension tab 762. Sufficient movement of the door 764 in a direction786 moves the terminating end 784 outside of the blocking portion 773,such that sufficient pivotal movement of the door 764 is enabled toprovide entry to and exit from the interior of the enclosure. In thisembodiment, the access portion, which is a portion 772A of the verticalwire 772, does not prevent opening of the door, if the extension tab 762is aligned with the portion 772A. The door 764, in another embodimentincludes one or more extensions, such as extensions 746 and 752 of FIG.13 to prevent the door from moving into the interior space. In anotherembodiment, the frame 770 includes a bar 788, shown in dotted outline inFIG. 14. Should the door 764 be pushed inward toward the interior of theenclosure, the extension 762 would come into contact with the bar 788,thereby preventing further inward movement. The bar 788 is either a partof the wire 772 or is a separate piece coupled to the wire.

FIG. 15 illustrates another embodiment of a door assembly 800 includinga frame 802 and a door 804. In this embodiment, the door 804 includes aplurality of hooked ends 806 which surround a vertical wire 808 of theframe 802. The door 804 pivots about the vertical wire 808. The doorassembly 800 includes a first door stop 810 and a second door stop 812.Each of the door stops 810 and 812 includes an access portion, ablocking portion, and a tab as described herein. In this embodiment,however, each of the tabs is fixedly coupled to the frame 802 and eachof the access portions and blocking portions are configured as part ofthe door 804. Door stop 810 includes a tab 814, an access portion 816,and a blocking portion 818. Door stop 812 includes a tab 820, an accessportion 822, and a blocking portion 824. The blocking portions 818 and824 prevent opening of the door 804 when the door is in the lowerposition as illustrated in FIG. 15.

The door 804 includes a latch assembly 830 which is substantiallysimilar in form and function as the latch assembly 624 of FIGS. 8, 9,and 10. The latch assembly 830 includes a latch support 832 which isfixed to a vertical wire 834 and a vertical wire 836, which also providestructure to the door 804. The latch support 832 supports a moveablelatch 838 having a handle 840 fixedly coupled to a pin 842. The pinslidingly engages a tab 844.

The access portions 816 and 822 and the blocking portions 818 and 824are defined by a vertical wire 846 of the door 804, which providesstructure to the door 804. The frame 802 includes a retainer 848 coupledto the frame 802. A hook 850 of the retainer 848 engages a top wire 852of the door 804 when the door 804 is in a closed position. By raisingthe door 804 in a vertical direction 854, the top wire 852 is disengagedfrom the hook 850 and the access portions 816 and 822 are respectivelyaligned with the tabs 814 and 820 such that the door 804 can be openedby pivoting the door 804 about the vertical wire 808.

In this embodiment, the tabs 814 and 820 each include terminatingportions which extend away from a plane defined by the door 804 and tothe exterior of the enclosure.

FIG. 16 illustrates another embodiment of a door assembly 900 includinga frame 902 and a door 904. In this embodiment, the door 904 includes aplurality of hooked ends 906 which surround a vertical wire 908 of theframe 902. The door 904 pivots about the vertical wire 908. The doorassembly 900 includes a first door stop 910 and a second door stop 912.Each of the door stops 910 and 912 includes an access portion, ablocking portion, and a tab as described herein. In this embodiment,however, each of the tabs is fixedly coupled to the door 904 and each ofthe access portions and blocking portions are configured as part of theframe 902. Door stop 910 includes a tab 914, an access portion 916, anda blocking portion 918. Door stop 912 includes a tab 920, an accessportion 922, and a blocking portion 924. The blocking portions 918 and924 prevent opening of the door 904 when the door is in the lowerposition as illustrated in FIG. 16.

The door 904 includes a latch assembly 930 which is substantiallysimilar in form and function as the latch assembly 624 of FIGS. 8, 9,10. The latch assembly 930 includes a latch support 932 which is fixedto a vertical wire 934 and a vertical wire 936 which also providestructure to the door 904. The latch support 932 supports a moveablelatch 938 having a handle 940 fixedly coupled to a pin 942. The pinslidingly engages a tab 944 to latch the door in a closed position.

The access portions 916 and 922 and the blocking portions 918 and 924are defined by a vertical wire 946, which provides structure to theframe 904. The frame 902 includes a retainer 948 coupled to the frame902. A hook 950 of the retainer 948 engages a top wire 952 of the door904 when the door 904 is in a closed position. By raising the door 904in a vertical direction 954, the top wire 952 is disengaged or separatedfrom the hook 950 and the access portions 916 and 922 are respectivelyaligned with the tabs 914 and 920 such that the door 904 can be openedby pivoting the door 904 about the vertical wire 908.

As can be seen in the embodiment of FIG. 16, each of the tabs 914 and920 is located behind the wire 946, in the interior of the enclosure.The wire 946 forms the access portions and the blocking portions.Consequently, if the latch 938 is unlatched but the door 904 is in theposition illustrated of FIG. 16, the hook 950 and tabs 914 and 920 areblocked from moving to the exterior of the enclosure by the blockingportions 918 and 924 as well as by the wire 952 coming into contact withthe hook 950.

The enclosure of FIG. 1 can be collapsed to a compact or storedstructure. To do so, clips or fasteners are used, in differentembodiments, for coupling each of the members to one another in theassembled position (FIG. 1). In other embodiments, relatively stiffwires acting as rods are threaded through hooks coupled to the membersto secure the members in the appropriate locations. By removing theclips, fasteners, and or rods, the enclosure can be folded like anaccordion to a compact position. In another aspect, each of the membersmay be hingedly or pivotally coupled to adjacent members and the entireenclosure can be folded or collapsed in an accordion-like manner.

Moreover, while the embodiments illustrated in this application relateto a wire crate whereby each side is formed by a plurality ofinterconnecting horizontal and vertical wires, this disclosure isapplicable to other animal crates. For example, a plastic crate with atop, bottom, and sides formed of a plastic material may utilize a doorand/or door frame as described herein. The plastic crate may have adesign of any conventional style crate.

In another embodiment, other materials besides plastic may be used toform an animal enclosure that includes a door and door frame asdescribed herein. Thus, the top, bottom, and sides may be formed of anymaterial (plastic, wire rod, etc.) and include at least one door frameand door as described and shown in the embodiments herein.

While exemplary embodiments incorporating the principles of the presentinvention have been disclosed herein, the present invention is notlimited to the disclosed embodiments. Instead, this disclosure isintended to cover any variations, uses, or adaptations of the inventionusing its general principles. For instance, other embodimentsincorporating sliding movement of a door with respect to a frame tolocate the features of the door stop in an aligned position whichenables pivoting movement of a door are included. In addition, whiledifferent embodiments of the door frame and door assemblies aredescribed with respect to the enclosure of FIG. 1, the described doorframe and door assemblies are not limited in use with the describedenclosure, but can be used with other enclosures. Further, thisapplication is intended to cover such departures from the presentdisclosure as come within known or customary practice in the art towhich this invention pertains and which fall within the limits of theappended claims.

The invention claimed is:
 1. An animal enclosure, comprising: aplurality of members defining an interior of the enclosure, where theplurality of members includes at least a first member; a frame of thefirst member having a plurality of interconnected horizontal andvertical wires that define an opening for an animal to pass therethroughand to enter or exit the interior of the enclosure; a door of the firstmember having a plurality of interconnected horizontal and verticalwires and being coupled to the frame, the door being pivotable about apivot wire of the frame to move between an open position and a closedposition, a latch assembly having a handle structure, wherein the handlestructure is configured to pivot with respect to one of the door and theframe and to latch the door in the closed position with respect to theframe; and a door stop including an access portion, a blocking portion,and a tab, wherein either (a) one of the vertical wires of the frame or(b) one of the vertical wires of the door forms the access portion andthe blocking portion, and the vertical wire (a) or (b) that does notform the access portion and the blocking portion is coupled to the tab,further wherein an alignment of the access portion and the tab at afirst position of the door enables pivotable movement of the door withrespect to the frame from the closed position to the open position andwherein in a second position of the door the blocking portion contactsthe tab to prevent pivotable movement of the door to the open position,wherein the tab is configured to move through the access portion or theaccess portion is configured to move such that the tab is passedtherethrough during pivoting movement of the door with respect to theframe when the tab is aligned with the access portion.
 2. The animalenclosure of claim 1 wherein sliding movement of the door with respectto the frame provides for the alignment of the tab with the accessportion to enable movement of the door from the closed position to theopen position.
 3. The animal enclosure of claim 2 wherein one of theplurality of interconnected wires of the frame disposed along theopening defines the pivot wire of the frame.
 4. The animal enclosure ofclaim 3 wherein at least two of the plurality of interconnected wires ofthe door each includes a hooked end that overlaps and contacts the pivotwire.
 5. The animal enclosure of claim 4 wherein one of the hooked endsis disposed between adjacent wires of the plurality of interconnectedwires of the frame which are inclined with respect to the pivot wiresuch that a space between the adjacent wires define a distanceconfigured to enable the sliding movement of the door with respect tothe frame.
 6. The animal enclosure of claim 5 wherein the access portiondefines a first area and the tab defines a second area smaller than thefirst area, wherein the alignment of the access portion with the tabenables movement of the door with respect to the frame from the closedposition to the open position.
 7. The animal enclosure of claim 6wherein one of the plurality of interconnected wires of the framedisposed at a perimeter of the opening includes the access portion. 8.The animal enclosure of claim 2 wherein the tab includes a portionthereof extending from a plane defined by the frame.
 9. The animalenclosure of claim 1 wherein the blocking portion includes a blockingtab extending from a plane of the frame and the access portion is asection of one of the horizontal and vertical wires of the frameadjacent to the tab.
 10. The animal enclosure of claim 1 wherein thevertical wire (a) or (b) that forms the access portion and the blockingis bent to define the access portion.
 11. An animal enclosure,comprising: a plurality of members defining an interior of theenclosure, where the plurality of members includes at least a firstmember; a frame of the first member having a plurality of interconnectedhorizontal and vertical wires that define an opening for an animal topass therethrough and to enter or exit the interior of the enclosure; adoor of the first member having a plurality of interconnected horizontaland vertical wires and being coupled to the frame, the door beingpivotable about a pivot wire of the frame to move between an openposition and a closed position, a latch assembly having a handlestructure, wherein the handle structure is configured to pivot withrespect to one of the door and the frame and to latch the door in theclosed position with respect to the frame; and a door stop including anaccess portion, a blocking portion, and a tab, wherein either (a) one ofthe vertical wires of the frame or (b) one of the vertical wires of thedoor forms the access portion and the blocking portion, and the verticalwire (a) or (b) that does not form the access portion and the blockingportion is coupled to the tab, further wherein an alignment of theaccess portion and the tab at a first position of the door enablespivotable movement of the door with respect to the frame from the closedposition to the open position and wherein an alignment of the blockingportion with the tab at a second position of the door prevents movementof the door to the open position, wherein the access portion is definedby a U-shaped bend in the vertical wire (a) or (b) that forms the accessportion and the blocking portion, wherein the vertical wire (a) or (b)that forms the access portion and the blocking portion is disposed at aperimeter of the door, and wherein the U-shaped bend includes an openportion aligned with the vertical wire (a) or (b) that is disposed atthe perimeter of the door.
 12. A door assembly for an animal enclosure,comprising: a frame having a plurality of interconnected horizontal andvertical wires that define an opening for an animal to pass therethroughand to enter or exit an interior of the enclosure; a door having aplurality of interconnected horizontal and vertical wires and beingcoupled to the frame, the door being pivotable about a pivot wire of theframe to move between an open position and a closed position, a latchassembly having a handle structure, wherein the handle structure isconfigured to pivot with respect to one of the door and the frame and tolatch the door in the closed position with respect to the frame; and adoor stop including an access portion, a blocking portion, and a tab,wherein either (a) one of the vertical wires of the frame or (b) one ofthe vertical wires of the door forms the access portion and the blockingportion, and the vertical wire (a) or (b) that does not form the accessportion and the blocking portion is coupled to the tab; wherein the tabrestricts pivotal movement of the door relative to the pivot wire in theclosed position of the door through contact with the blocking portion ofthe vertical wire (a) or (b), and wherein the tab is configured to movethrough the access portion during pivoting movement of the door withrespect to the frame when the tab is aligned with the access portion.13. The door assembly of claim 12 wherein a vertical wire of theplurality of interconnected horizontal and vertical wires of the doordisposed at a perimeter thereof forms the access portion, and whereinthe access portion is defined by a U-shaped bend in the vertical wire ofthe door that is at the perimeter of the door.
 14. The door assembly ofclaim 13 wherein at least one of the plurality of interconnectedhorizontal and vertical wires of the door includes a hooked end disposedbetween adjacent wires of the frame which are inclined with respect tothe pivot wire of the frame such that a length of the pivot wire locatedbetween the adjacent wires defines a distance configured to limit thesliding movement of the door with respect to the frame.
 15. The doorassembly of claim 14 wherein the access portion defines a first area andthe tab defines a second area smaller than the first area, whereinalignment of the access portion with the tab enables movement of thedoor with respect to the frame from the closed position to the openposition.
 16. The door assembly of claim 15 wherein alignment of theblocking portion with the tab prevents movement of the door with respectto the frame to the open position.
 17. The door assembly of claim 16wherein the tab includes a portion thereof extending from a planedefined by the frame.
 18. The door assembly of claim 17 wherein one ofthe plurality of interconnected horizontal and vertical wires of theframe disposed directly adjacent to the opening defines the pivot wireof the frame structure.
 19. The door assembly of claim 12 wherein thetab is spaced from a plane of one of the door and the frame, and whereinsliding moment of the door with respect to the frame moves the blockingportion away from the tab and aligns the access portion with the tab.20. The door assembly of claim 19 wherein at least two of the pluralityof interconnected horizontal and vertical wires of the door includes ahooked end, wherein the hooked ends circumscribe the pivot wire of theframe about which the door pivots.
 21. The door assembly of claim 20wherein the hooked end includes a space defining a slot which isconfigured to enable both sliding movement and pivoting movement of thedoor with respect to the frame.
 22. The door assembly of claim 12wherein the vertical wire (a) or (b) that forms the access portion andthe blocking portion is bent to define the access portion.